Eagles’ season ends with regional loss

Saturday, November 10, 2018
South Putnam receiver Hayden Switzer hauls in a catch before a Lutheran defender pulls him down Friday in regional action. The sophomore also had a seven-yard touchdown catch Friday.
Chuck Hess photo

The South Putnam Eagle football team’s season ended Friday night in the Class A regional against the Indianapolis Lutheran Saints.

A few big plays turned the tide of the game and allowed the Saints to escape with a 36-20 victory over the Eagles.

A couple of first-half big plays and a strong running game propelled the Saints to their third consecutive regional championship and improved their record to 10-3.

The Eagles ended their season at 6-7, but came up a few plays short of advancing in the tournament. Those plays were key according to South head coach Nathan Aker

“We told the kids that every play counts in a big game like this,” Aker said. “If you miss something it will hurt you.”

The Eagles started the game on a positive note by forcing a three-and-out, but couldn’t capitalize on the opportunity.

The two teams played to a first quarter stalemate, but the Saints were able to gain the advantage in field position and managed to put the first score on the board early in the second quarter. Dante Akins found the end zone from two yards out and Lutheran was able to add the two-point conversion and led 8-0.

“We came out ready to play and the kids really put themselves in a good position. All we asked for was a chip and a chance and we got that,” Aker said.

The big plays came into play next. The Saints intercepted an Eagle pass, then got a 17-yard run from Marcus McFadden. On the play, McFadden fumbled the ball, but it bounced right back into his arms and he picked up a big first down and then two plays later he exploded for a 45-yard touchdown run and a Lutheran 15-0 lead.

The Eagles then seemed to have the Saints stopped late in the half with a chance at getting good field position, but a 46-yard run by McFadden followed by a 24-yard touchdown run gave Lutheran a 22-0 first-half lead.

“We were pretty down when we went to the locker room at the half. We started hearing the kids getting up. That has been their MO all year. They never quit,” Aker said.

Lutheran had stacked its defense with eight or nine in the box to stop the Eagle rushing attack. After halftime, the Eagles adjusted and went to the air.

Following a Jackson Wood blocked punt, the Eagles scored on a fantastic circus catch by Hayden Switzer from Riley Stone. Stone then hit Dalton Scott with the two-point conversion pass and cut the lead to 22-8.

South then got a great play from Steven Schnepp in recovering the ensuing on-side kick, but the Saints snuffed out the drive with an interception deep in their own territory.

Lutheran seemed to pull away in with two more scores early in the fourth quarter, but South wouldn’t go away. The newfound air attack got the Eagles back in the game. Stone completed three passes and ran for 39 yards on the possession, including a 1-yard TD run to cut the lead to 36-14.

The Eagles then recovered their second onside kick of the night, but Lutheran picked off another Eagle pass and the clock began to wind down.

Again, the Eagles came back as Scott took a pass from Stone and rolled down the right sideline for an 84-yard touchdown and cut the lead to 36-20 with 2:10 left.

South Putnam senior Dalton Scott runs away from a Lutheran defender on an 84-yard touchdown reception in the fourth quarter.
Chuck Hess photo

South couldn’t pull magic on the its third onside kick attempt and the Saints were able to run out the clock.

The Eagles struggled to contain the Lutheran running attack. The Saints rolled up 348 yards rushing led by McFadden’s 206 yards and Akins added another 135 yards.

“They are a really good team. We competed, but the are really good,” Aker said.

The Eagles passed for a season-high 211 yards and threw the ball 37 times in the game.

“We worked on the passing game earlier in the season, but we didn’t need it in the last few games,” Aker said.

The Eagles got great contributions all game and season from their seniors, who ended their careers with a sectional championship.

“I can’t say enough about these seniors. They are special kids and players,” Aker said proudly.

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South Putnam0081220

2nd Qtr

IL — Dante Akins 2 run (Hayden Filipovich from Michael Joseph) 8-0, 7:33

IL — Marcus McFadden 45 run (Micah Mattes kick) 15-0, 4:05.

IL — McFadden 24 run (Mattes kick) 22-0, :24

3rd Qtr

SP — Hayden Switzer 7 pass from Riley Stone (Dalton Scott from Stone) 22-8, 3:04

4th Qtr

IL — Logan Beard 1 run (Mattes kick) 29-8, 11:19.

IL — Luke Snow 25 pass from Blake White (Mattes kick) 36-8, 8:13

SP — Stone 1 run (pass failed) 36-14, 6:00.

SP — Scott 84 pass from Stone (pass failed) 36-20, 2:10

ILSP
Rush - Yds41-34818-53
Pass - Yds133211
Comp-Att-Int9-14-016-37-4
Total - Yds55-26455-481
Punt - Ave.1-19.03-25.7
Pen - Yds12-10510-75
Fumble - Lost3-21-0

RUSHING: Lutheran: McFadden 19-206, Akins 16-135, Beard 4-9, White 2-(-2). South Putnam: Scott 7-11, Schnepp 1-0, Cain 3-5, Switzer 1-(-2), Stone 6-39.

PASSING: Lutheran: White 9-14-0 133. South Putnam: Stone 16-37-4 211.

RECEIVING: Lutheran: Faubion 1-1, Hardiman 1-16, McFadden 2-49, Snow 3-35, Beard 2-6, Jones 1-26. South: Schnepp 4-42, Demerit 1-9, Gregory 3-32, Bach 3-27, Switzer 2-11, Scott 3-90.

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